BUSH - An investigation is underway in St. Tammany Parish after a human finger was discovered inside an alligator snapping turtle earlier this week.

The sheriff's office says the discovery was made Monday while a man from Bush was cleaning the large turtle for a meal. Deputies say the reptile was captured on a trotline in the Tchefuncte River.

Deputies took the appendage to the parish coroner, who confirmed it was a human finger. The coroner and the STPSO crime lab have been working to retrieve a fingerprint, but those efforts have proven unsuccessful. Calls to area hospitals also yielded no results.

Members of the STPSO Marine Division along with representatives from the St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office are currently canvassing the area where the turtle was caught. A human remains detection dog is also being utilized in the search.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office at 985-898-2338 or the St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office at 985-781-1150.